Bellator 82 results: Koreshkov decisions Good to claim Season 7 crown

In his first Bellator tournament, Andrey Koreshkov left $100,000 richer.

The Russian extended his undefeated streak to 13 and won the Season 7 welterweight competition with a unanimous decision over former welterweight champ Lyman Good.

The fight headlined Bellator 82, which took place at Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort in Mt. Pleasant, Mich. Main-card fights aired on MTV2 following prelims on Spike.com.

With a cold stoicism, Koreshkov said his Russian spirit took him through some tough spots.

“That’s why Russian people are so strong, including myself,” he said via translator.

Koreshkov is now set to meet the winner of an upcoming welterweight title bout between champ Ben Askren and Season 6 winner Karl Amoussou.

Good signaled his intention to ground the fight early, closing the distance in the fight’s first round. Koreshkov, however, defended the shot with a stiff uppercut early. Resetting, Good kept pressing in as Koreshkov continued to counter. A well-placed right hand dropped Good on his face, but he managed to right himself, appearing no worse for the wear.

His initiative, however, waned as Koreshkov landed more stiff punches. Even when he exposed himself with a leaping knee, Good, a three-time tourney vet, couldn’t put the fight on the mat.

With a round in the Russian’s corner, Good pressed again. But it was Koreshkov who continued to throw his uppercut with accuracy. Good seized opportunity when Koreshkov sat down on his punches and exposed himself to a takedown, and the former champ took the back for the choke. But hand-fighting bought Koreshkov time, and in transition, he scrambled to his feet when Good lost his hooks. Koreshkov could have taken to the fight to the mat when he caught a lazy leg kick but instead elected to look for bombs as the round expired.

Possibly tied at a round apiece, Koreshkov again landed with an uppercut and left hook. He again passed on an opportunity to take the fight down. Good twice shot from the open but was blocked. A spinning kick allowed him the opportunity to take the fight down, but Koreshkov quickly righted himself. Chasing down his opponent, Koreshkov earned his own takedown and punched from up top. Good angled for armbars, but made little attempt to initiate a scramble that might have evened the score. Instead, Koreshkov closed the fight in the dominant position.

The final scores were 29-28 in favor of Koreshkov.

Koreshkov (13-0 MMA, 5-0 BFC), a native of Omsk, Russia, adds Good to a list of tourney victims that include Jordan Smith and Marius Zaromskis. Good (14-3 MMA, 7-3 BFC), who alos fell short in the finals of the Season 4 tourney, sees a three-fight streak snapped.

Rickels guts out decision over face-smashing Fischer

When the judges announced a unanimous decision at the end of three rounds, it looked like Michigan resident Jason Fischer might get the hometown nod.

Fischer did, after all, spend the bulk of the third frame on top of Bellator tourney vet David Rickels, resisting an armbar with a foot to the face.

But as it turned out, scores of 30-27 and 29-28 twice were for Rickels, who praised his opponent’s inventiveness in a 160-pound catchweight bout.

“Literally while I’m laying there, I’ve got the armbar pretty tight, and he starts stepping on my neck. He was literally choking me. I had to let go.”

Rickels initially wasn’t anxious to lock up with his opponent. After trading dozens of kicks, Fischer landed a nice combination and pressed for a takedown. That was unsuccessful, as was another several beats later. But an uppercut landed in close, and he better timed an approaching Rickels to get things to the mat. Not much followed offensively, and Rickels was able to recover and turn up the tempo of his strikes. When the two spilled to the mat, Fischer threatened with an armbar as Rickels held top position until the bell.

Rickels found his range with strikes early in the second, but Fischer retorted with a spinning backlist. Another attack was countered with a slapping kick to the face, and the two quickly clinched. It was there that Rickels’ experience showed, as he leaped to Fischer’s back in transition and then transitioned to mount. Rickels wasn’t able to hold the position and wound up defending a straight ankle lock, which allowed Fischer to recover top position. Rickels scrambled to his feet and took advantage of Fischer’s guard-pull. A flurry of hammerfists put Fisher in trouble as the round ended.

Fischer gamely tried to keep Rickels at bay with combinations, but the Bellator tourney vet smothered him. A kimura attempt allowed Rickels to get to Fischer’s back, but a lapse in defense put him on his back, where Fischer worked ground and pound. Rickels last gasp came midway through the frame when he seized Fischer’s arm. But he got a rude comeuppance when Fischer posted a foot on his face and used weight to escape. Although Rickels would stay active from the bottom, Fischer would stay on top.

Rickels is now headed to lightweight, where he has designs on the Season 8 tournament.

“I give him mad props; that was a really close fight,” he said of Fischer. “I’m really excited to be back in the cage. Looking good at 160, going to 155. Watch out.”

After falling short to Karl Amoussou in the finals of the Season 6 welterweight tournament, which was his first pro loss, Rickels (11-1 MMA, 5-1 BFC) rights his ship. Fischer (5-1 MMA, 1-1 BFC) suffers his first pro setback in six fights.

“The Rhino” tramples return of Kala Hose

One quick flurry of fists, and middleweight Doug “The Rhino” Marshall was left standing.

EliteXC veteran Kala Hose, who hadn’t fought in two years, charged back after Marshall’s initial attack with a flying knee to the body. He charged again, only to meet a left hook that bounced his head off the canvas. It was all over in 22 seconds.

Pro wrestlers had nothing on Marshall’s fire on the mic.

“I was a little stressed out,” he said. “My last fight was in India. This crowd right here got me so pumped up. I had nothing but pure pain and violence for Kala Hose.”

Marshall (15-6 MMA, 1-0 BFC), a former WEC light-heavyweight champ, improves to 2-3 in his past five outings while Hose (7-6 MMA, 0-1 BFC) has now lost four straight.

Sarnavskiy dominates cage-walking Hervey for unanimous decision

Although Tony Hervey nearly pulled off what would have been a crazy escape from a clinch, Alexander Sarnavskiy never let him go.

The Russian outwrestled the veteran at every turn for a shutout on judges’ scorecards, 30-27

Hervey came out swinging early, which prompted Sarnavskiy to stuff him against the fence. A few undercooks later, however, and the Russian had the fight on the mat, where he mounted Hervey in a scramble.

Perched above Hervey, Sarnavskiy paused before sitting into an armbar. He eventually executed the joint lock, but despite having the position, Hervey wouldn’t tap. Instead, the veteran worked back to his feet, where Sarnavskiy clinched and tossed him back to the mat. Ground and pound followed, with Hervey taking big shots from the bottom until the round expired.

Hervey chased Sarnavskiy again in the second but wound up on his back in short order. Again, the Russian had no problems asserting dominance, mounting Hervey and pounding away. This time, Hervey exploded out of trouble. But Sarnavskiy stuffed him against the cage. When Hervey managed to reset, he charged with punches only to wind up on his back. He stayed there until the end of the frame.

The third frame saw Hervey switch things up with a Capoeira kick, but the destination was the same: the mat. Hervey tried to escape in the most creative way possible, attempting to walk and flip off the cage with the Russian’s arms affixed to his waist. Sarnavskiy, though, kept his grip, resisting a reversal and taking the back. One escape later, he would hold the position as time expired.

Sarnavskiy (22-1 MMA, 1-1 BFC) rebounds after a loss to Rich Clementi in the Season 7 lightweight tournament, which handed him his first loss in 22 pro fights. Hervey (15-14 MMA, 0-1 BFC) sees a two-fight streak snapped.